An ESP32 with an IR LED and a small IR receiver can replace multiple remotes:

• Turn the TV on/off from Home Assistant
• Control volume, input, soundbar
• Send complex AC commands (mode, temperature, fan)
• Trigger everything from scenes, automations, dashboards

This guide shows how to:

1. Wire an ESP32 as an IR blaster (transmitter + receiver)
2. Use ESPHome to capture your remote codes
3. Expose “TV Power”, “Volume Up”, “AC 24°C Cool” etc. as scripts / scenes in Home Assistant
4. (Optional) Use MQTT + Arduino instead of ESPHome

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1. Hardware Required

• ESP32 DevKit
• IR receiver module (e.g. VS1838B, TSOP38238, KY-022 etc.)
• IR LED (5 mm high power IR LED)
• NPN transistor (2N2222, S8050, 2N3904) or logic-level N-MOSFET
• Resistors:
  • ~100–220 Ω for IR LED current limiting
  • ~1 kΩ for transistor base/gate (if NPN)
• Breadboard / perfboard & jumper wires
• USB power supply

Important: Don’t drive an IR LED directly from an ESP32 GPIO at full current – always use a transistor and resistor.

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2. Wiring the IR Blaster

2.1 IR Receiver → ESP32

Most IR receiver modules have 3 pins:

• OUT – decoded IR signal
• GND
• VCC – usually 3.3–5 V (check the module)

Example wiring:

ESP32         IR Receiver
3.3V   -----> VCC
GND    -----> GND
GPIO23 -----> OUT

You can pick any free GPIO for OUT (avoid strapping pins); here we’ll use GPIO23.

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2.2 IR LED + Transistor → ESP32

Recommended NPN transistor driver:

             3.3V
              |
             100Ω
              |
           IR LED
              |
             C (collector)
          NPN transistor
             E (emitter)
              |
             GND

ESP32 GPIO19 -- 1kΩ -- B (base)

Connections:

• IR LED anode → resistor (100–220 Ω) → 3.3 V
• IR LED cathode → transistor collector
• Transistor emitter → GND
• ESP32 GPIO19 → 1 kΩ → transistor base
• Share GND between ESP32 and transistor

This allows higher LED current for strong IR range without stressing the ESP32 pin.

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METHOD 1 – ESPHome IR Blaster

ESPHome has built-in IR support (remote_transmitter and remote_receiver).
The flow is:

1. Capture codes in ESPHome logs
2. Add “send” actions using those codes
3. Expose them as scripts (or switches) to Home Assistant

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3. ESPHome Base Configuration

esphome:
  name: esp32-ir-blaster
  platform: ESP32
  board: esp32dev

wifi:
  ssid: "YOUR_WIFI"
  password: "YOUR_PASSWORD"

logger:
api:
ota:

3.1 IR Transmitter Component

remote_transmitter:
  pin: 19
  carrier_duty_percent: 50%

• pin: 19 → transistor base GPIO
• 50% duty cycle is typical for IR protocols like NEC, Samsung etc.

3.2 IR Receiver Component (for Learning Codes)

remote_receiver:
  pin: 23
  dump: all
  filter: 50us
  idle: 4ms
  tolerance: 25%

• dump: all prints any IR code it decodes to the ESPHome logs.
• Later, you can change dump: to a specific protocol if you want.

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4. Capturing Remote Codes

1. Flash the ESPHome firmware to your ESP32.
2. Open ESPHome logs (via the ESPHome add-on or esphome logs).
3. Point your TV remote at the receiver and press a button (e.g. Power).

You’ll see lines like:

[remote_receiver:035]: Received NEC: address=0x00FF, command=0x10EF
[remote_receiver:035]: Received SAMSUNG: data=0xE0E040BF
[remote_receiver:035]: Received RAW: 32 ON, 1600us, -800us, ...

Make note of:

• Protocol (e.g. NEC, SAMSUNG, etc.)
• Data / address / command fields

You can repeat for:

• TV power
• Volume up/down
• Mute
• Input/source
• AC power, temp, fan mode (if supported as a single code)

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5. Sending IR Codes with ESPHome

You can send codes from:

• script: blocks (preferred)
• switch: actions
• or on_... triggers

5.1 Example: NEC TV Codes

Suppose logs show:

• NEC: address=0x00FF, command=0x10EF → TV Power
• NEC: address=0x00FF, command=0x906F → Volume Up
• NEC: address=0x00FF, command=0xB04F → Volume Down

Add scripts to ESPHome:

script:
  - id: tv_power_toggle
    then:
      - remote_transmitter.transmit_nec:
          address: 0x00FF
          command: 0x10EF
          repeat:
            times: 2
            wait_time: 40ms

  - id: tv_volume_up
    then:
      - remote_transmitter.transmit_nec:
          address: 0x00FF
          command: 0x906F

  - id: tv_volume_down
    then:
      - remote_transmitter.transmit_nec:
          address: 0x00FF
          command: 0xB04F

For Samsung, transmit_samsung: with a data: field is used. For raw/unrecognised protocols, you can use transmit_raw: with the pulse timings, but that’s more advanced.

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6. Exposing IR Commands to Home Assistant

6.1 ESPHome Scripts as Services

All ESPHome script: entries become callable services in Home Assistant:

• esphome.esp32_ir_blaster_tv_power_toggle
• esphome.esp32_ir_blaster_tv_volume_up
• etc.

You can call them from:

• Automations
• Scenes
• Dashboard buttons

Example Lovelace entities card:

type: entities
entities:
  - entity: button.tv_power        # we'll create this via template or script helper
  - entity: button.tv_volume_up
  - entity: button.tv_volume_down

Simpler: use Home Assistant scripts that call the ESPHome services.

6.2 Home Assistant Scripts for TV Control

In scripts.yaml (or via UI):

tv_power:
  alias: "TV Power"
  sequence:
    - service: esphome.esp32_ir_blaster_tv_power_toggle

tv_volume_up:
  alias: "TV Volume Up"
  sequence:
    - service: esphome.esp32_ir_blaster_tv_volume_up

tv_volume_down:
  alias: "TV Volume Down"
  sequence:
    - service: esphome.esp32_ir_blaster_tv_volume_down

Then add those scripts to your dashboard or scenes.

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7. AC Control with IR

AC units often send full state frames (mode + temp + fan) every time you press a button.
Each “button” on the remote is usually one unique IR code.

You can:

1. Capture codes for several states (e.g. “Cool 24°C”, “Cool 26°C”, “Off”).
2. Add one ESPHome script for each code.
3. Call those scripts from scenes or automations.

Example from logs (fictional Samsung-like code):

[remote_receiver:035]: Received SAMSUNG: data=0xE0E040BF  # AC Cool 24°C
[remote_receiver:035]: Received SAMSUNG: data=0xE0E048B7  # AC Off

Add to ESPHome:

script:
  - id: ac_cool_24
    then:
      - remote_transmitter.transmit_samsung:
          data: 0xE0E040BF

  - id: ac_off
    then:
      - remote_transmitter.transmit_samsung:
          data: 0xE0E048B7

In Home Assistant scripts:

ac_cool_24:
  alias: "AC Cool 24°C"
  sequence:
    - service: esphome.esp32_ir_blaster_ac_cool_24

ac_off:
  alias: "AC Off"
  sequence:
    - service: esphome.esp32_ir_blaster_ac_off

Then you can:

• Put those scripts into a “Summer Evening” scene
• Trigger them with time / temperature automations

For full “AC climate” entities, ESPHome also has climate: IR components for specific brands, but that’s a deeper topic and brand-specific.

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8. Example: Scene with TV + AC

A Home Assistant scene that:

• Turns TV on
• Sets AC to 24°C cool
• Dim lights

scene:
  - name: Movie Night
    entities:
      light.living_room:
        state: on
        brightness: 60
    sequence:
      - service: script.tv_power
      - delay: "00:00:01"
      - service: script.ac_cool_24

(Or include the script calls inside a script.movie_night if you prefer.)

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METHOD 2 – MQTT + Arduino IR Blaster (Optional)

If you don’t want ESPHome, you can use:

• IRremoteESP8266 (popular IR library)
• PubSubClient (MQTT)

The ESP32 subscribes to topics like home/livingroom/ir/send and sends IR codes accordingly.

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9. MQTT Command Format

You can define a simple JSON structure, e.g.:

{"protocol": "NEC", "address": "0x00FF", "command": "0x10EF", "repeat": 2}

Published to home/livingroom/ir/send.

Home Assistant can send this via:

mqtt:
  button:
    - name: "TV Power"
      command_topic: "home/livingroom/ir/send"
      payload_press: '{"protocol":"NEC","address":"0x00FF","command":"0x10EF","repeat":2}'

Or by calling mqtt.publish in scripts/automations.

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10. Arduino IR Blaster Code (Short Example)

Conceptual example:

#include <WiFi.h>
#include <PubSubClient.h>
#include <IRremoteESP8266.h>
#include <IRsend.h>
#include <ArduinoJson.h>

#define WIFI_SSID   "YOUR_WIFI"
#define WIFI_PASS   "YOUR_PASSWORD"
#define MQTT_SERVER "192.168.0.10"
#define IR_SEND_PIN 19

WiFiClient espClient;
PubSubClient client(espClient);
IRsend irsend(IR_SEND_PIN);

void callback(char* topic, byte* payload, unsigned int length) {
  if (String(topic) != "home/livingroom/ir/send") return;

  StaticJsonDocument<256> doc;
  DeserializationError error = deserializeJson(doc, payload, length);
  if (error) return;

  String protocol = doc["protocol"] | "";
  uint32_t address = strtoul(doc["address"] | "0", nullptr, 0);
  uint32_t command = strtoul(doc["command"] | "0", nullptr, 0);
  uint8_t repeat = doc["repeat"] | 1;

  if (protocol == "NEC") {
    for (uint8_t i = 0; i < repeat; i++) {
      irsend.sendNEC((address << 16) | command);
      delay(40);
    }
  }

  // Add other protocols as needed
}

void reconnectMQTT() {
  while (!client.connected()) {
    if (client.connect("ESP32_IR_Blaster")) {
      client.subscribe("home/livingroom/ir/send");
    } else {
      delay(2000);
    }
  }
}

void setup() {
  irsend.begin();

  WiFi.begin(WIFI_SSID, WIFI_PASS);
  while (WiFi.status() != WL_CONNECTED) delay(500);

  client.setServer(MQTT_SERVER, 1883);
  client.setCallback(callback);
}

void loop() {
  if (!client.connected()) reconnectMQTT();
  client.loop();
}

This keeps the ESP32 as a pure MQTT-driven IR bridge, and Home Assistant sends JSON commands for different buttons / AC modes.

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11. Tips & Troubleshooting

• No response from TV/AC:
  • Check IR LED orientation and driver wiring
  • Increase repeats (2–3)
  • Use a high-power IR LED and point it correctly
• Receiver not decoding:
  • Try changing filter and tolerance values
  • Reduce ambient sunlight or fluorescent light during capture
• Different brands / multiple devices:
  • You can mix protocols in one ESP32 (TV + AC + soundbar)
  • Just add more scripts with their specific codes

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Summary

With a single ESP32, an IR LED, and a receiver, you can:

• Capture real remote codes using ESPHome’s remote_receiver
• Replay them using remote_transmitter scripts
• Expose “TV power”, “AC cool 24°C”, “Volume up/down” as Home Assistant services, scripts and scenes
• Optionally build a pure MQTT IR bridge using Arduino and IRremoteESP8266

It’s an inexpensive, flexible way to integrate legacy IR-only devices (TVs, ACs, receivers, fans) into modern Home Assistant automations.